Did you know that certain rights can be taken away from you if you are deemed incapacitated by a Florida guardianship court? What can you do to protect yourself from becoming the ward in a Florida guardianship matter? How can an estate plan benefit you, even before you die? When should you consult with a Florida estate planning lawyer? How can an estate plan help you to avoid a guardianship?
Are you involved in a West Palm Beach guardianship? Does the ward want to hire a guardianship lawyer to represent him or her in the Palm Beach guardianship proceedings? Did you know that, if you are deemed incapacitated by the court, important rights may be removed from you? Can a ward choose which Florida guardianship attorney he or she wants to hire? A recent Third DCA opinion, Jacobsen v. Busko, answers these questions.
Guardianship lawyers and trust attorneys in Florida encounter many people who have, unfortunately, developed Alzheimer’s disease and/or dementia. Alzheimer’s disease can prevent a person from being able to properly care for themselves. Therefore, sometimes, a guardianship is needed. Guardianship and estate planning lawyers know that there are ways to avoid a guardianship. There are also ways to insure that the people you wish to inherit from your estate will actually inherit. Contacting an estate planning attorney to draft healthcare documents and/or a trust before you, potentially, become incapacitated can be crucial, especially if you are the owner of an NFL team like Pat Bowlens.
Pursuant to Florida guardianship law, who is an interested person? Can I participate in a Florida guardianship proceeding for my spouse, mom, dad, or aunt? Can I participate in a guardianship proceeding of just anyone? Who has the ability to go into a probate court West Palm Beach and have a say in someone’s guardianship proceeding? What do Palm Beach courts consider to be frivolous claims? Anyone who is involved in a guardianship matter in Florida should read St. Pete v. Osorio-Khor.
Who may be subject to a guardianship in Florida? What do I do if a family member files for guardianship of me? What happens if I am deemed incapacitated by a West Palm Beach guardianship court? When should I hire a Florida guardianship lawyer? What if I don’t like the court appointed attorney? As an alleged incapacitated person, can I hire my own lawyer? What is Florida Statute 744.331?
What is a Florida guardianship? When is a guardianship necessary? Can a Palm Beach guardianship help to protect my mother who has dementia? Guardianships are not the only means of helping an incapacitated person in the State of Florida. In fact, Florida guardianship law actually requires the use of the least restrictive alternative to protect persons incapable of caring for themselves and managing their financial affairs whenever possible. What does this mean? What is an acceptable less restrictive alternative to a guardianship?
What happens if you have a child and the child’s father is incapacitated or the subject of a guardianship and a trust is set up. Guardianship and Trusts, when you’re not an interesting person and can’t participate in legal matters regarding the trust. Hello my name is John Pankauski. I’m a trust litigation attorney. What happens if you have a child and the child’s father is incapacitated or the subject of a guardianship and a trust is set up. What if they file a motion that says you as the parent of your child are not an interested person in the trust. Do you have the ability on behalf of your minor child to still learn about that trust? Well a similar issue was decided by Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal in March of 2018 in the Tenzer guardianship. It was decided March 21st 2018 and it deals with those issues. Under what circumstances are you an interested person in a trust that set up for somebody else in a Guardianship and what if you didn’t appeal the order that says you’re not interested in that trust, then you may be prohibited from ever being involved with that trust.
Has someone mis-used a power of attorney in Florida or taken a bank account from your elderly relative or grandparent? Do you believe that your dad’s caretaker is stealing from them? What should you do if you suspect that your elderly parents are being financial exploited by their caretakers? What is financial exploitation? Ask any Palm Beach guardianship lawyer and they will tell you that financial abuse of the elderly in Florida is a serious concern.
Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal ruled October 26, 2016, that the estate planning attorney for a deceased client must testify in an undue influence trial and will contest. The attorney objected to answering questions about his client disinheriting children. The trial court ordered him to testify. What is an undue influence trial? How can an attorney be required to testify when there is attorney client privilege? In Florida, what are the exceptions to the attorney client privilege?
If your client is now incapacitated, remember that you cannot hand over your clients file to anyone except your client or the clients court appointed guardian. Guardianship and turning over files to the wrong person. Are you involved in a family guardianship where your client is now incapacitated and a family member like a spouse or a son calls you up and says “Hey, give me Dad’s file or give me Mom’s file”. Be careful, remember who your client is and remember that you can’t give your clients file to anyone except your client or somebody pursuant to a proper document or an order such as the persons court appointed guardian. Many times in guardianship situations estate planning lawyers improperly give away a clients file to family members who are not clients or who otherwise don’t have permission to get those documents.